Wednesday September 8 (Semi finals)

Y.Gazura’s late dramatics send Assadi Consulting inc through to final

Y.Gazura found himself at the right place and at the right time when N.Gilbert found him on a brilliant pass to end what was a thriller between the Assadi Consulting inc and the Horsemen. It was a moment of salvation for the team with the best regular season record. Game one was a cake walk for the Assadi Consulting inc striking seven straight times to end it on the mercy rule 7-0. N.Gilbert dazzled his way to a hat trick, and P.Assadi made some early key saves to preserve the shutout. It looked like game two was headed in the same direction when M.Croteau and J.Courteau struck early for a 2-0 lead. The Horsemen really didn’t have anything going for them and needed some sort of a break in order to force matters. Eventually, that moment came when their captain V.Pandza pulled his club within one. Then, in the dying moments of the game, D.Greco completed a late comeback to force the shootout. The momentum was clearly on the Horsemen’s side as they were able to take the breakaway competition and force a game three. Both teams played it tight as expected. Neither side were able to get it done in regulation time leaving only a five minute sudden death period followed with a potential shootout. With the score 1-1, the Assadi consulting inc got the break they were looking for when awarded a power play. And even though they didn’t technically capitalise with the man advantage, the ball possession remained in their favour which eventually led to Y.Gazura seizing the moment.

(7)Assadi Consulting inc vs Horsemen(0) Game 1

(5)Horsemen vs Assadi Consulting inc(4) S.O Game 2

(2)Assadi Consulting inc vs Horsemen(1) O.T Game 3

Resilient Club Ecole Orient stun Armos

When it was said and done, this was definitely a compelling series between the Club Ecole Orient and the Armos. The Club Ecole Orient didn’t really have a choice to capture game one due to their shorter bench. That close win gave them an extra out if things didn’t pan out for game two, which was the case as they were no where to be seen. N.Chiminian quarter backed four tallies that saw his captain Y.Derohannessian benefit twice for the Armos. With the series all tied up, Y.Derohannassian provided more goods netting back to back tallies in a short span. At that point, it seemed like this series was almost locked in for the Armos when considering the Club Ecole Orient looked gassed out. Then, the leadership group and the Club Ecole Orient as a whole, turned what was a tall order into an incredible comeback. They scored three straight in nearly three minutes to grab the lead. However, they couldn’t quite get it done just yet as N.Chiminian came to rescue the Armos fairly late in the game. Both sides were now down to its final outs with an overtime period remaining followed with a potential shootout. With neither side able to get it done in the sudden death frame, a dreaded  shootout was all that stood in between losing or advancing. Throughout the three rounds, F.Nasser used a hard low wrist shot to beat R.Kenadjian giving the advantage to the Club Ecole Orient. The Armos were then down to its final hope when Y.Derohannessian was forced to score. Unfortunately for the captain, the script favoured his opponent instead despite Derohannessian having an incredible series accumulating seven points. Once C.Malkoun denied him, the Club Ecole Orient teammates rushed their net minder in celebration knowing they punched a ticket to the final.

(2)Armos vs Club Ecole Orient(3) Game 1

(1)Club Ecole Orient vs Armos(5) Game 2

(3)Armos vs Club Ecole Orient(4) S.O Game 3

The SalumiVino player of the night goes to Fadl Nasser of the Club Ecole Orient. The captain was a warrior, logging a ton of minutes, blocking shots while creating offense that included a huge shootout winner.

The Wednesday/Thursday division is now down to its final two teams. The Assadi Consulting inc will take on the Club Ecole Orient for all the marbles. The critics will make a case that the Assadi Consulting inc have the game breakers, but that doesn’t guarantee anything, especially when going up against a team that never quits.